Snow Joke
by Therm
Summary: Update! Shawn and Chris try to sort our their issues.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Snow Joke  
****Summary: Shawn gets some bad news while he's at a hotel.  
****Notes: Inspired by the UK weather conditions. Was going to be a one shot, but I got an idea that made it a bit longer.**

He held the phone to his ear, hand shaking slightly. This couldn't be happening to him.

"Are you still there?" Came the voice of his best friend.

"Yeah." He said.

"It'll be all right, Shawn."

"That's easy for you to say." Shawn said.

There was a knock at the door. "Tell Vince next time I see him I'll be making a formal complaint."

Hunter smiled to himself. "I give you a call tomorrow, see how it all went."

"Thanks for the support." Shawn said, voice tinged with bitterness that Hunter was happily at home right then. Shawn ended the call and went to the door. He decided that the best approach was to deal with this like a plaster, quick and painless. He opened the door quickly, startling the man on the other side. He wasn't sure what to make of his guest.

"Hi." Came a sheepish Chris Jericho. He didn't look any happier about this than Shawn.

"I guess you better come in." Shawn said. Not happy with sharing his space still.

Hunter had been the messenger. Chris was supposed to catch a flight straight after the show tonight and fly out. He stayed behind a while and the snow had moved in. Most of the other wrestlers had got stranded at the airport.

Shawn had planned to wait until the next day to leave so he had the luxury of a room. The conditions had meant the hotel had been booked solid by the time Chris got there and with the snow coming down hard now, he had to stay there. He'd called Vince to let him know where he was and he'd told Chris he'd get Shawn to share his room.

Chris dropped his bag just inside the door. "I'm really sorry about this, I'd have slept in the lobby but Vince...."

"It's fine." Shawn said, not sounding fine about it at all.

"Oh..." Chris said.

Shawn stopped in his tracks and turned. "What?"

"I've never seen you in your pyjamas before." He said.

"Well you wouldn't have." Shawn said, turning back round and continuing on his way. He went through an open door. Chris looked around the room he was in. It was a decent size and there was a chair he could use for a bed.

Shawn came in with a blanket and pillow and dumped them on the chair Chris had been thinking of using for his bed.

"There you go. I'm going to bed now."

He turned back round and closed the door to the other room.

Chris wondered if it was possible to get Shawn some kind of hospitality lessons. He pulled out some of his clothes and made himself a bed.

He climbed in and lay there for a while.

A smile spread across his face. He never thought he'd ever share a room with Shawn Michaels. He felt like he was the luckiest fan ever, even if he had managed to piss HBK off as well.

He was far too hyper to sleep and pulled his music player from his bag, put the headphones in and listened to some tunes until he felt sleepy.

*

It didn't take long for Shawn to drift off to sleep. But his blissful rest was interrupted by someone calling his name.

Not able to work out where he was or who it could be, he cracked his eyes open only to see Chris Jericho leaning over his bed.

He closed his eyes and rubbed away the sleep before opening them again. Chris was still there.

"I'm sorry to wake you, but is there heating somewhere out there? It's freezing and I can't sleep."

Shawn struggled to find his voice, tiredness making his mind sluggish. "The heater..."

"It's not working. You wanna take a look?"

"No, I wanna sleep." Shawn mumbled.

"It's freezing out there."

"Jus' sleep on the floor then." Shawn said, turning over to get away from Chris and back to sleep.

Chris went back out and grabbed the blanket and pillow Shawn had given him and made a bed on the floor. As nice as the carpet was, it was pretty hard but Chris didn't think he should say anything to Shawn about it. He'd already woke him up once.

He closed his eyes hoping sleep would come to him this time, but as he lay there all he could listen to was the sound of Shawn breathing. The harder he tried to ignore it and concentrate on sleep the louder Shawn seemed to get.

He knew there was only one thing he could do.

*

Shawn's mobile was going off and he wearily reached across to the bedside cabinet to get it.

"Here you go." Came a voice near him.

Shawn opened his eyes to see Chris Jericho in bed next to him.

"Argh!!" Shawn gasped as he saw the man laying next to him. The idea of distancing himself from Chris while he was in a bed didn't occur to him as being a stupid thing to do, at least not until he hit the ground.

"Are you okay?" Chris asked.

"Get the damn phone." Shawn snapped.

Chris answered Shawn's cell. "Hello, Shawn's phone?" He was silent for a moment or two before replaying the message to Shawn. "It's Hunter and he wants to know why the hell I'm answering your phone."

"Give it here." Shawn demanded. Chris passed the phone to Shawn. "Hunter?" Shawn asked to check it was him on the phone.

"It's me. What the hell's going on?"

"Chris made me fall out of bed!" Shawn said, giving Chris a look as he said it.

"I did not." Chris protested.

"He did what? Are you hurt?"

Shawn pouted a little even if Hunter couldn't see, but made sure Chris could. "I think I'm okay."

"So what's Chris doing in your room?" Hunter asked.

"More importantly, what do you think you were doing in my bed?" Shawn asked Chris.

"I..... you told me to get in!!!" Chris defended.

"I did not!" Shawn denied. "Hunter, he got in bed with me against my will."

"Tell him he can get arrested for that." Hunter told Shawn.

"He'll get fired for that." Shawn said.

"Hey, look I woke you up, I told you I was cold and you said 'just get into bed and shut up, I'm tired.'" Jericho defended.

"That does sound like you." Hunter said on the phone.

"Whose side are you on?" Shawn asked.

"Ha, he agreed with me?" Chris said triumphantly.

"Tell Chris I'll kick his ass next time I see him." Hunter said to Shawn.

"I can't tell him that. You'll have to do it." Shawn passed the phone to Chris and while Hunter threatened Chris, Shawn got off the floor.

Chris handed the phone back to Shawn, he was wearing a sullen look now. Whatever Hunter had said to him, Chris hadn't liked it. "I'm gonna get my stuff." Chris said.

Once Chris was out the room, Shawn went back on the phone with Hunter. "What did you say to him?"

"It doesn't matter." Hunter said. "So, you enjoy your night of passion with Chris then, huh?"

"Very funny." Shawn said. "He did keep interrupting my sleep with really stupid.....Oh..."

"What's wrong?" Hunter asked.

"I think maybe I did hurt myself when I fell. Ow... dammit."

"Shawn?" Hunter's worried tone cut through.

"I don't feel so good." Shawn said.

*

Chris tried to get everything tidy and the way it was when he got there.

He looked at the bedroom door where Shawn still remained. He considered saying goodbye but Hunter had made it perfectly clear what would happen if he went near Shawn again.

He understood that. Shawn was oblivious to it, but Hunter had seen the looks he'd given Shawn before. Seen the wanting in his eyes. He was just being a friend to the older man really, protecting him from any damage that Chris might cause.

Not that he would. He adored HBK, would never hurt him.

Saying goodbye wasn't a good idea. He opened the door to the hotel room, ready to try and catch a flight out to the next town if he could.

His phone started to ring. He answered it straight away.

"Chris, you hurt Shawn." Came Hunter's voice.

His own thoughts confused him for a moment as he tried to process what he was being told. "What? I don't...."

"Get back in the bedroom, Shawn's hurt. Stay with him until an ambulance gets there."

"Oh crap." Chris said as he rushed back into the bedroom.

*

Chris opened the door to the bedroom.

Shawn was sat on the bed, phone in hand as he text a message.

"Oh damn it, I thought you were on the verge of death the way Hunter was panicking."

"Sorry my injury isn't more life threatening for you." Shawn snapped back. He continued on the phone and didn't look back to Chris until he had finished.

"Well what the hell's wrong?" Chris asked as Shawn continued to sit, looking perfectly fine.

"I fell out of bed and landed on my ass, what the hell do you think is wrong." Shawn replied.

Chris suddenly understood the tension in Hunter's sharp words earlier. "Your back."

Shawn didn't answer. He didn't need to. He could tell from the look on Chris face how bad he felt and knew if he were a decent person, he'd ease some of those fears, but he wasn't feeling all that decent so he left Chris to stew in his own worry.

They stayed silent and unmoving for a long time, both just waiting for the magical knock on the door.

Chris broke the silence first.

"I'm really sorry." He said.

"I know." Shawn replied, not ready to forgive and forget right there and then.

"Hunter's a jerk." Chris blurted out.

Shawn looked at Chris, his emotion unreadable. "I'm not even liking you right now and you're gonna insult my best friend as well."

"You don't know what he said to me on the phone." Chris insisted.

"Going to hospital here!!!" Shawn exclaimed. "He's allowed to be mad at you."

"He didn't know you were.... going to hospital then." Chris mentioned, knowing that argument was weak.

"You don't have to wait here you know. I'll be fine."

"I wouldn't dare leave you in case Sir Helmsley McMahon found out." Chris mocked. "He might bury me."

"Literally, I hope." Shawn moved a little on the bed and winced in pain.

"Can I get you something?" Chris asked, wanting to help if he could.

"You've done enough thanks." Shawn replied.

"If I gotta stay here at least let me do something."

"Your jobs to open the door when the ambulance gets here and that's it."

"I can read you something from my book."

"Don't have a copy, sorry."

"I have one in my bag."

"You carry your own book around with you?"

"I might need it."

"Well, no still."

"I can read the bits about you."

"No!"

"Fine." Chris admitted defeat. "How about if I sing to you?"

"I've heard you sing, no way."

"You're gonna mock me about singing? You?"

"Hey, I'm not that bad. I mean, I'm not good but I'm not in a band so I don't have to be good."

"Oh, that's just cold. But hey, I can sing. I'll sing something you like. Like...er.. Elvis."

"I don't want songs I enjoy spoilt forever by you, thank you very much."

"Hurry up." Chris muttered, willing the ambulance to get there quicker.

"Aren't you enjoying my company?" Shawn asked.

"You're not exactly a riot." Chris said, almost sulking.

Shawn smirked. "I thought you'd have loved spending all this alone time with me, what with the huge man crush you have on me."

It was Chris' turn to crash to the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

"I, er, I don't have a crush on you." Chris said, explaining quickly as he gathered himself up from the ground.

"That's not what I heard."

"Who'd you hear it from?" Chris demanded to know.

"I can't say, it's confidential."

Chris ran through who he could have told his secret too and who could have told Shawn. "It's not true anyway, so you know, whoever told you that's lying."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I mean I like you as a friend.. but you know I'm not in love with you."

"That's a shame."

Chris wondered what Shawn meant by that. Was he toying with him? Was he sad that Chris didn't like him or was he being dry in his humour. Or was he hoping that by saying that Chris would admit his true feelings. He hated it when he couldn't tell with Shawn.

"What do you care?" Chris said, looking at Shawn before moving over to the window. "Where's this damn ambulance?!

"Hey I care!" Shawn protested.

"Of course you do."

"I do."

"Well how could I possibly doubt you when you've spent the majority of your time here making me feel guilty." Chris replied.

"Okay, I have a confession to make. There's no ambulance."

"What?"

"I lied."

"You're not hurt?"

"No, I'm hurt. Just not 'call an ambulance' hurt. Luckily for you."

"You son of a bitch. I can't believe you'd do that to me."

"You wanna know why I did it?"

"Because you love lying to Canadians?"

"No. It was to find out the truth, so you'd let your guard down and you'd admit your feelings for me."

"I have no feelings for you, other than...."

"Don't say it! Don't say something you'll regret just because you're pissed." Shawn warned.

Chris stared at Shawn before looking away. "Disgust." He said. "I hate you."

The silence between them stretched uncomfortably until it was finally broken by Shawn, his voice tainted with anger. "Get out."

Chris looked at Shawn, his emotions stayed hidden behind his wall of anger. Without another word, he got his bag and left Shawn alone in the hotel.

Shawn sat in the silence of the room, the door slamming echoing around in his own head.

He wished Hunter was there right then.

He grabbed his phone but calling his number seemed to be too hard. He opened up the message and began to type one out to Hunter. Afterall, he had been the one encouraging him to tell Chris how he felt. He had to know how it went, even if it was a disaster.

'Chris has gone.' He wanted to say more, but that seemed to sum it all up. He sent the message and waited for Hunter's reply.

'Did you tell him?' Hunter waited for Shawn's reply. Knew that his friend had wanted to come clean to Chris about how he felt for a long time. Hunter had persuaded him to go for it. The perfect oppurtunity he told him.

When his phone beeped another message he hoped that there might be a glimmer of hope in it, something with which to work with.

But opening it killed off all hope. All it said was 'No.'

Chris still didn't know how Shawn felt and he'd gone and left the hotel.

Hunter stared at his phone, deep in thought.

He could call Shawn and talk him through his pain and rejection.

Or he could call up Chris and tell him the truth that Shawn hadn't got to.

But what would be the right thing to do?

**

Hunter knocked on the hotel door.

"Come on Shawn, let me in. I got a flight all the way down here to see you."

"Go away. I don't want to see anyone." Shawn said.

"Please Shawn." Hunter said.

"No."

"I bought you cookies."

There was a long pause before Shawn answered. "You're just saying that to get me to open the door."

Hunter shook the pack.

"That could be anything!" Shawn protested

Hunter rolled his eyes as he slipped the receipt under the door.

He could hear Shawn on the other side of the door. "You gonna let me in?"

Shawn unlocked the door and Hunter came in. Shawn's look of sadness was exaggerated as he eyed up the cookies. Hunter handed the pack across to his friend. "Mind if I call room service and get a drink?" Hunter asked. Shawn shook his head, mouth already stuffed with half a cookie. Hunter called and asked for two diet cokes to be bought up to the room.

Shawn wondered over to the bedroom and curled back on the bed where he seemed to have spent most of his hours wallowing over Chris. Hunter sent a quick message as he made his way through to the bedroom.

"So, you gonna tell me what happened or not?" Hunter pressed.

"Nothing to tell. I told him I lied about the ambulance and he left."

"Yeah, so why did you lie to him again?"

"I don't know.. it just came out. I didn't know what to do. I told you I shouldn't talk to him."

"You should have told him the truth."

"I did try to." Shawn said. "You're supposed to be making me feel better, Hunter." Shawn complained, looking even more depressed.

"Well, maybe there's some damage control you can do. A smooth phone call might do the trick, but you might have to write it down so you don't mess up again." Hunter said.

Before Shawn could reply, a knock at the door silenced any potential conversation.

"Ah this'll be the drinks. I got you a coke by the way, to wash down all the cookies."

"Can you get me some razorblades and asprin?" Shawn said.

"Shut up." Hunter reprimanded as he went to the door.

Shawn bit into another cookie as he waited for Hunter to come back with the drinks.

"Here's your coke." Hunter said.

Shawn looked up to see Hunter at the doorway with Chris standing at the foot of the bed, Shawn's drink in his hand. When neither of them said anything, Hunter realised he'd have to be spokesperson.

"Okay, so I called Chris and told him how you felt. And told him if he thought that there was anything worth making a go of then he should come here. So now that I've laid all your cards out for you, you think you boys can handle it like grown up's from here?" When neither protested, Hunter took the cue to leave.

"I'm sorry." Shawn blurted out once the door had closed.

"Just tell me why you lied to me?" Chris said, letting his defences fall now all the secrets were in the open.

"Because I wanted to give you a reason to stay with me." Shawn said. He looked anywhere but at Chris with the admission.

"You idiot." Chris said, but noticing how Shawn reacted, he realised he took it more seriously than he meant it. "Shawn, I didn't need any made up excuses to stay with you."

"I kinda feel stupid now you know." Shawn said. "You know, for not just coming out with it."

"Me too." Chris admitted. "So what do we do now?"

"Chris, I have an important question I need to ask you." Shawn said. "Would you like my last cookie?"

"I'll halve it with you." Chris said. Breaking the biscuit in half and giving the other part back to Shawn. He knew this could be the start of something beautiful.


End file.
